Ligature for reed musical instrument

ABSTRACT

A ligature for attaching a reed to the mouthpiece of a reed instrument such as a clarinet, saxophone, or the like. The ligature has a reed retaining portion with a rubber cushioning pad on the inner surface which bears against the reed and resiliently holds it against the mouthpiece. A pair of resilient integral clips extend from each lateral side of the reed retaining portion and partially encircle the mouthpiece. The ligature may be slid longitudinally along the mouthpiece for removal or replacement thereon.

United States Patent [72] Inventors James A. Carlini 5659 Autumerest S.W., Canton, Ohio 44706; Daniel W. Shetler, 413 Hower St. N.E., North Canton, Ohio 44720 [21] Appl. No. 796,104 [22] Filed Feb. 3, 1969 [45] Patented Feb. 23, 1971 [5 4] LIGATURE FOR REED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT l0 Claims, 7 Drawing Figs. [5 2] U.S. Cl 84/383 [51] lnt.Cl 610d 9/02 [50] Field ofSearch 84/383, 380, 385, 382 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,801,421 4/1931 Gemeinhardt 84/383 2,200,054 5/1940 Bundy et al 84/383 2,292,584 8/1942 Tafarella 84/383 2,411,380 11/1946 Maccaferri..... 84/383 3,202,032 8/1965 Strathmann.... 84/383 Primary Examiner-Richard B. Wilkinson Assistant ExaminerJohn F. Gonzales Al!0rneyPaul E. Milliken PATENTEU H592 319m INVENTORS; JAMES A. CARL/NI BY DAN/EL W SHETLER ATTORNEY LIGATIJRE FOR REED MUSICAL INSTRUMENT PRIOR ART The closest prior art known to applicants are US. Pat. Nos. 1,535,537, issued to W. Majeski; No. 2,200,054, issued to G. M. Bundy et al.; No. 2,292,584, issued to H. O. Tafarella; and No. 2,41 L380, issued to M. Maccaferri. The most common type of ligature known in the prior art has a band which completely encircles the mouthpiece and is tightened onto the mouthpiece with one or more thumb screws. The ligatures of Majeski, Bundy and Tafarella mentioned previously, completely encircle the mouthpiece. The ligature of Bundy is held on by the resilient spring action of the band. The ligature of Tafarella is held on the mouthpiece by rneans of a sliding wedge which slides longitudinally between the circumferential band and the mouthpiece. The ligature of Maccaferri is closest in overall construction to applicants present ligature since it does not completely encircle the mouthpiece and may be removed by sliding it longitudinally off the mouthpiece after pressing upon the ligature to relieve the spring tension. The Maccaferri ligature, however, requires-a pair of special longitudinal slots to be cut in the side of any mouthpiece before this ligature can be used thereon. The prior art ligatures which completely surround the mouthpiece either require loosening of a wedge or thumb screw to remove them from the mouthpiece, or if held on merely by spring tension, tend to slip off the mouthpiece because of the conical contour of the mouthpiece. In addition, some of the'prior art ligatures which use thumb screws and other clamping devices, may be tightened too much and may prevent proper vibration of the reed or may cause the reed to be crushed.

OBJECTS or THE INVENTION It is the primary object of this invention to provide a ligature for holding a reed securely on a mouthpiece without slippage while permitting the reed to vibrate freely to provide the proper tonal quality to the instrument.

Another object of this invention is to provide a ligature which is easy to remove from and replace on the mouthpiece.

A still further object of this invention is to eliminate the need for tightening thumb screws or wedges when attaching the ligature to the mouthpiece.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a ligature which is simple and inexpensive to manufacture and which has a minimum of moving parts which tend to wear out upon continued use ofthe ligature.

These and other objects of the invention will become more fully apparent as the description proceeds in the following specification and the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a mouthpiece with a reed and ligature assembled thereon:

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the ligature removed from the mouthpiece with the reed assembled therewith;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the ligature and reed assembly shown in FIG. 5, but taken from an opposite position; and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view similar to FIG. 4, but showing a different embodiment of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawings, a mouthpiece assembly indicated generally by the numeral 1 has a conventional mouthpiece 2 of the type used on clarinets, saxophones and other reed instruments. The mouthpiece 2 is circular in cross section but hasa longitudinal flat surface 3 extending along one side thereof for receiving a vibrating reed 4. The mouthpiece has a longitudinally inner tubular portion 5 which fits into the end of the musical instrument on which the mouthpiece is used. The reed 4 is held against the flat surface 3 by a ligature indicated generally by the numeral 6. The ligature 6 is made preferably from resilient metal such as spring steel, however, other metals may be used so long as they have sufficient resiliency to permit flexing of the ligature for placing it on the mouthpiece. The ligature 6 has a center reed retaining portion 7 which has a rectangular surface 8 which extends longitudinally of the reed 4 and the mouthpiece 2. A pair of integral substantially parallel side portions 9 extend inwardly toward the mouthpiece 2 and with the rectangular surface 8 form a hollow channel 10 in which is mounted a rubber cushioning pad 11. The pad 11 may also be made of any suitable resilient material which will aid in securely holding the reed 4 against the mouthpiece 2 while permitting the reed 4 to vibrate freely and give the proper tonal quality in the instrument. Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 6, an integral tab 12 is bent inwardly from the longitudinally inner end of the reed retaining portion 7 and serves to longitudinally position the reed 4 with respect to the ligature 6 so that when the ligature and reed are positioned on the mouthpiece 2, the longitudinally inner end of the reed 4 lies in abutting relationship to the tab 12. The tab 12 serves as a stop for the reed 4 and prevents it from sticking out of the longitudinally inner end of the ligature 6. The ligature, 6 has a curved side clip 13 integral with and extending from the side portion 9 of the reed retaining portion 7 and extending around a portion of the periphery of the mouthpiece 2 to securely hold the ligature 6 thereon. The side clips 13 together with the reed retaining portion 7 must extend at least more than half the distance around the circumference of the ligature 2. A centrally located opening 14 is provided in each of the side clips 13. The opening, as illustrated in the drawings, follows substantially the contour of the outer edge of the clips 13, however, other contours of center openings may be used without departing from the scope of the invention. The opening 14 serves a twofold purpose.

Referring now to FIG. 2, it may be seen that the opening 14 permits the side clips 13 to more easily conform to the contour of the mouthpiece 2 which is curved in both the circumferential and longitudinal directions. If the side clips 13 were made as a solid sheet with no center opening, the clips 13 would tend to contact the longitudinally curved surface of the mouthpiece 2 at the center of the clip, but unless the clip was formed with a concave surface to match the curvature of the mouthpiece, the clips 13 would not contact the mouthpiece along the outer edges of the clips. This would tend to provide an unstable condition between the ligature and the mouthpiece and might cause unwanted movement of the reed and ligature on the mouthpiece. When the clips 13, however, are provided with the center opening 14, the clip contacts the mouthpiece 2 both at the portions 15 and 16 of the clip 13.

In addition, if the clips 13 are made solid the entire ligature 6 tends to flex radially outwardly when it is being slid onto the mouthpiece. This tends to deflect the reed retaining portion 7 and may cause it to hold the reed less securely. By providing the opening 14, unwanted flexing of the reed retaining portion 7 is prevented since the side clips 13 tend to flex at the junctures 17 and 18 between the clips 13 and the side portions 9. In other words, the junctures l7 and 18 become a hinge point for each of the clips 13 and the flexing occurs at these points rather than in the reed retaining portion 7.

FIG. 7 shows in cross section a mouthpiece 2' and a reed 4' identical to those illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 6, and a ligature 19 of a different configuration from that shown in FIGS. 1 through 6. The ligature has a reed retaining portion 20 similar to the portion 7 in the previous embodiment and a rubber cushioning pad 21 similar to the cushioning pad II in the previous embodiment. The ligature l9 differs from the ligature 6 by having only one side clip 22 rather than a pair of side clips 13 extending from each lateral side of the reed retaining portion. The side clip 22 extends from one side of the reed retaining portion 20 and curves around more than half the circumference of the mouthpiece 2'. The ligature 19 must, like the ligature 6, be sufficiently resilient to permit it to flex radially outwardly when it is slid onto the substantially conical shaped mouthpiece of a musical instrument. The embodiment of FIG. 7 is also preferably made with a center opening 23 in the clip 22 which is similar to the openings 14 in the clips 13 of the previous embodiment.

In both embodiments it will be understood that the rubber cushioning pads 11 or 21 may be adhered to the reed retaining portion by a suitable adhesive. It should also be understood that materials other than rubber which have sufficient resiliency may be used for the cushioning pad.

Various other modifications may be made in the embodiments shown herein without departing from the scope of the invention.

We claim:

1. A ligature for a reed supporting mouthpiece comprising:

A. a reed retaining portion;

B. integral clip means extending from at least one lateral side of the reed retaining portion to engage a portion of the periphery of a mouthpiece;

C. said clip means and said reed retaining portion extending around more than half of but less than the entire circumference of the mouthpiece; and

D. said clip means being sufficiently resilient to permit it to flex radially outwardly when the ligature is positioned on the mouthpiece while maintaining radially inward pressure against the mouthpiece to hold the reed in operative position thereon without clamping screws or mouthpiece engaging hooks.

2. A ligature as claimed in claim 1 wherein the clip means comprises a pair of substantially identical clips extending from opposite lateral sides of the reed retaining portion, each clip engaging a portion of the periphery of the mouthpiece.

3. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 having a resilient cushioning pad on theinner surface of the reed retaining por- 5. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 wherein the reed retaining portion has an integral axially inwardly extending tab on the longitudinally inner end thereof for longitudinally positioning the reed with respect to the ligature.

6. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 wherein each clip has an opening in the center thereof.

7. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 which is made of spring steel.

8. A ligature as claimed in claim 1 wherein the 'clip means is an integral curved resilient clip extending from one lateral side of the reed retaining portion and extending around more than half the periphery of the mouthpiece.

9. In a reed type musical instrument the combination of:

A. a mouthpiece provided with a flat face;

B. a reed positioned against the plate face;

C. a ligature for resiliently holding the reed against the flat face;

D. said ligature partially encircling the mouthpiece and extending more than half the circumferential distance therearound; and

E. said ligature being a spring-like member biased radially inwardly to bear against the mouthpiece and retain the ligature and reed thereon without clamping screws or mouthpiece engaging hooks.

10. The combination claimed in claim 9 including a resilient cushioning member positioned between the ligature and the reed. 

1. A ligature for a reed supporting mouthpiece comprising: A. a reed retaining portion; B. integral clip means extending from at least one lateral side of the reed retaining portion to engage a portion of the periphery of a mouthpiece; C. said clip means and said reed retaining portion extending around more than half of but less than the entire circumference of the mouthpiece; and D. said clip means being sufficiently resilient to permit it to flex radially outwardly when the ligature is positioned on the mouthpiece while maintaining radially inward pressure against the mouthpiece to hold the reed in operative position thereon without clamping screws or mouthpiece engaging hooks.
 2. A ligature as claimed in claim 1 wherein the clip means comprises a pair of substantially identical clips extending from opposite lateral sides of the reed retaining portion, each clip engaging a portion of the periphery of the mouthpiece.
 3. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 having a resilient cushioning pad on the inner surface of the reed retaining portion.
 4. A ligature as claimed in claim 3 wherein the cushioning pad is made of elastomeric material.
 5. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 wherein the reed retaining portion has an integral axially inwardly extending tab on the longitudinally inner end thereof for longitudinally positioning the reed with respect to the ligature.
 6. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 wherein each clip has an opening in the center thereof.
 7. A ligature as claimed in claim 2 which is made of spring steel.
 8. A ligature as claimed in claim 1 wherein the clip means is an integral curved resilient clip extending from one lateral side of the reed retaining portion and extending around more than half the periphery of the mouthpiece.
 9. In a reed type musIcal instrument the combination of: A. a mouthpiece provided with a flat face; B. a reed positioned against the plate face; C. a ligature for resiliently holding the reed against the flat face; D. said ligature partially encircling the mouthpiece and extending more than half the circumferential distance therearound; and E. said ligature being a spring-like member biased radially inwardly to bear against the mouthpiece and retain the ligature and reed thereon without clamping screws or mouthpiece engaging hooks.
 10. The combination claimed in claim 9 including a resilient cushioning member positioned between the ligature and the reed. 